protect them.161 In addition, their confinement and isolation make them entirely dependent on Detention Administration and Detention Staff, and also on their co-detainees. They are placed in a situation akin to victims of domestic violence, unable to escape the perpetrator. As the 2012 Directive itself underlines, some victims in close relationships “are disproportionately affected when they are dependent on the offender economically, socially or as regards [their] right to residence.”162 The EU should expressly require Member States to recognise detainees as a group specifically vulnerable to victimisation, repeat victimisation, intimidation and retaliation. It should take into account the specific vulnerability of victims of crimes suffered in detention in the implementation monitoring conducted by the European Commission. b) “Competent authorities” must include Detention Staff Our research shows that detainees will rarely, if ever, come into contact with Law Enforcement Authorities (typically designated by Member States as “competent authorities” for the purposes of the 2012 Directive). Detention Staff are often the first and only contact with authorities that a victim of violent crime suffered in detention may have. The European Commission should publish guidance that Detention Staff must be included in the concept of “competent authority” and, therefore, be required to participate in the implementation of the 2012 Directive. c) Establish a framework for a complaints protocol for Detention Administration and Detention Staff When receiving a complaint (a right of victims enshrined in Article 5 of the 2012 Directive), Detention Administration and Detention Staff should be able to refer to a clear and detailed framework on what steps to take when there is an allegation of violence/ill-treatment or when Detention Staff /administration become aware of such situations, in the absence of a complaint. d) Guidelines on the implementation of the individual assessment of Article 22 of the 2012 Directive, including on protection measures for people who suffer violence in detention The European Commission should produce detailed guidelines addressed to Detention Administration and Detention Staff on how to implement individual assessments when a person is held in detention, in particular in respect of specific protection needs. Recommendation 2: Training on Victims’ Rights There is a lack of awareness and understanding of Victims’ Rights amongst Detention Professionals, in particular Detention Staff and lawyers. Victims’ Rights should be systematically included in the training offered to Detention Staff and should be organised in cooperation with Victim Support Services to strengthen cooperation between these stakeholders. The European Commission should support the provision of this training. Recommendation 3: Monitoring the effective implementation of Victims’ Rights Despite the risk of violence that may occur in detention, and the vulnerability of detainees, Victims’ Rights are not being effectively implemented in this context. It is important that the European Commission continue actively to monitor the implementation of the 2012 Directive, in particular with respect to the obligation to provide information about rights (Article 4). We urge the European Commission to require Member States to provide copies of the letters of rights for victims to ensure they are drafted in plain language, and a protocol on the distribution of the letters of rights for victims to people in detention. Moreover, as part of the Member States’ obligation to communicate to the European Commission (in 2020) data showing how victims have accessed the rights set out in the 2012 Directive (Article 28), we urge the European Commission to require that Member States provide data on: (i) the number of complaints, investigations, prosecution and convictions of violent crime against detained victims; (ii) the use of force by Detention Staff, and associated disciplinary procedures against Detention Staff or against detainees; (iii) detainees supported by Victim Support Services; (iv) protection measures implemented in detention; and (v) compensation awarded. EU legislative action Recommendation 1: New legislation on pre-trial detention The best way of protecting people from the violence that so many suffer in pre-trial detention is to keep them out of detention if they don’t need to be there. As discussed in this report, pre-trial detainees are particularly vulnerable to violence. Despite this, the overuse of pre-trial detention in EU Member States is well-known.163 161 See e.g., ECtHR [GC], Bouyid v. Belgium, no. 23380/09, 28 September 2015; ECtHR [GC], Salman v. Turkey, No. 21986/93, 27 June 2000. 162 Recital 18 of the Directive 2012. 163 Fair Trials, A Measure of Last Resort? The practice of pre-trial detention decision making in the EU, available at: https://www.fairtrials.org/sites/default/files/publication_pdf/A-Measure-of-Last-Resort-Full-Version.pdf. 56